COVER STORY » BY CLEM BASTOW the ascent of songstress Lorde marks her as the latest in a line of rapid-rise pop stars. what sets this 17-year-old apart, however, is her down-to-earth approach. now, recharged after a gruelling schedule, Lorde has even more to share with Australian audiences. WHEN NIRVANA WERE inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in April this year, it was assumed they would perform with a guest vocalist to fill the void left by linchpin and vocalist Kurt Cobain, who died 20 years ago. Armchair commentators mused: who would they go with? Someone from a popular new band whose creative lineage could be traced back to Nirvana’s heyday? Could drummer Dave Grohl take on vocal duties? Instead, Grohl and bassist Krist Novoselic were joined by a parade of female vocalists: Joan Jett, Kim Gordon, St Vincent (Annie Clark) and young New Zealand-born pop 14 THE BIG ISSUE 4 – 17 JULY 2014 sensation Lorde. It was the inclusion of the latter that caused the most fuss; for Lorde (known to her parents as Ella Yelich-O’Connor) was just 17 and, evidently, too ‘pop’ to pay tribute to grunge’s finest. This is because Lorde’s debut single, ‘Royals’, set the world (and charts) on fire, and soon became the song you’d hear in every clothes store in town. In terms of omnipresent songs from the Antipodes, it was as inescapable as Gotye’s ‘Somebody That I Used to Know’ had been two years earlier. Chief among the detractors was Australian rap export Iggy Azalea, who told Billboard, “Nothing against her, but I think when you’re doing a tribute to someone that’s dead, generally it should be the person’s peer. Lorde is not Kurt Cobain’s peer. No matter if she killed the performance or not, I just don’t think it’s appropriate.” This sort of age-based griping is par for the course when the target is the first female artist to top the Billboard Alternative charts in over 17 years, or who wins two Grammy Awards (Song of the Year and Best Pop Solo Performance), all before she can legally drive a car or buy a beer. So who is Lorde? And does she have what it takes to eke out an evergreen career in an industry notoriously unkind to young stars? PHOTOGRAPH BY CHARLES HOWELLS